Anyone care to bet on World Series TV ratings?

There’s been quite a bit of hand-wringing over this year’s World Series, which starts this week. It boils down to how Tampa Bay vs. Philadephia doesn’t exactly have the sex appeal of Los Angeles vs. Boston.

What’s more, Jeff Gagne, a vice president with MPG North America, responsible for national sports negotiations, points out that this Tampa Bay worst-to-first story is pretty intriguing. It all comes down to the Tampa Bay story. “If that storyline can see itself over a long series, the ratings should actually do okay.”

So keep this in mind if you find yourself drawn to BetOnline.com, an online sports book. The betting line on the broadcast rating (who knew you could bet on such things) is currently at a 10.2 share, it said today. That would make it the second-lowest rated World Series of all time. The line for the first game of the series is 9.5.